2XU Compression Tights Product Review

Somehow I managed to procure a personal sponsorship while at Interbike in Las Vegas last September (2010). I seem to forget sometimes how easy it is for me to start a conversation with a complete stranger and I’ve been known to make friends in 2.5 seconds flat. Networking comes easy to me, always has. I feel lucky then as an elite athlete to receive a Brand Ambassador sponsorship for my 2011 racing season from the relatively new company 2XU. When I say that I mean, relatively new to the United States markets. I’ve used other compression products for recovery in the past from brands like Skins and Zoot and have already been sold on the value of the effects on recovery as a result of wearing those types of products. Traveling to and from races is almost, if not just as difficult on an athlete as the actual race itself. Combine that with traveling anywhere from 1-3 hours one way to every race I go to here in Northern California nearly every weekend from February to September; and it doesn’t take long for the monetary investment to pay off for an elite athlete looking for every edge they can get to perform at their best every time they compete.

The first thing I noticed about 2XU’s compression tights was the brilliant eye-catching artwork that makes me feel like I’ve jumped ‘warp-speed’ into the 25th century and I suddenly have an urge to die my hair orange and walk around saying ‘Autttooooo wassshhhh’ all day long. Speaking of which, I think suspenders should come back in style……but I digress. It’s not uncommon to show up to a bike race and see 1/2 your competitors walking around in some kind of compression type clothing. I’ll tell you what though, you walk around with these tights on and…….BOOM…you’ve already mentally-whipped your competitors into submission because you already look fast walking around.

While I’m not in the habit of bad-mouthing other companies’ products, I will say this about 2XU’s compression tights, are not too tight, which makes them easy to get on, but they’re tight enough to help prevent loading and definitely make a significant difference in being able to train for days in a row and feel fresh. As elite athletes, we know the next best thing to a quality pair of compression tights is laying against a wall with your legs up in the air, but we also have other lives and lots of things that just need to get done. Investing in a quality pair of compression tight is well worth the investment and in my personal experience, no other product has performed better than my pair of 2XU compression tights.